James Middleton Riley (February 9, 1851 – December 27, 1913), better known as Doc Middleton, chose the alias David Charles Middleton ut most often called "Doc" was a famed

outlaw An outlaw, in its original and legal meaning, is a person declared as outside the protection of the law. In pre-modern societies, all legal protection was withdrawn from the criminal, so that anyone was legally empowered to persecute or kill them ...

and

horse thief Horse theft is the crime of stealing horses. A person engaged in stealing horses is known as a horse thief. Historically, punishments were often severe for horse theft, with several cultures pronouncing the sentence of death upon actual or presu ...

, whose exploits of stealing perhaps 2,000 horses over a two-year period earned a spot in the

Wild West Show Wild West shows were traveling vaudeville performances in the United States and Europe that existed around 1870–1920. The shows began as theatrical stage productions and evolved into open-air shows that depicted romanticized stereotypes of c ...

Criminal career

Middleton stole his first horse at the age of 14. In 1870 he was convicted of murder and was sentenced to life in prison at the Huntsville Prison. In 1874 he escaped the prison. He was caught stealing horses in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. After serving 18 months he moved to

Sidney, Nebraska Sidney is a city in and the county seat of Cheyenne County, Nebraska, United States. The city is north of the Colorado state line. The population was 6,757 at the 2010 census. History The city was named for Sidney Dillon, president of the Uni ...

, where he shot and killed a soldier Pvt James Keith of the

5th Cavalry Regiment The 5th Cavalry Regiment ("Black Knights") is a historical unit of the United States Army that began its service on August 3, 1861, when an act of Congress enacted "that the two regiments of dragoons, the regiment of mounted riflemen, and the t ...

January 13, 1877, from nearby

Fort Sidney Fort Sidney is a historic fort located in Sidney, Nebraska, United States. The 37th Infantry Regiment established "Sidney Station" at a point midway between the Platte Rivers, where the modern community of Sidney, Nebraska, now stands. Initially ...

in a bar fight. He was arrested but he escaped as a

lynch Lynch may refer to: Places Australia * Lynch Island, South Orkney Islands, Antarctica * Lynch Point, Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica * Lynch's Crater, Queensland, Australia England * River Lynch, Hertfordshire * The Lynch, an island in the River ...

mob gathered. He was eventually wanted by

Wyoming Stock Growers Association The Wyoming Stock Growers Association (WSGA) is an American cattle organization started in 1872 among Wyoming cattle ranchers to standardize and organize the cattle industry but quickly grew into a political force that has been called "the de facto ...

and the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, which offered rewards for his capture. Army officer William H. H. Llewellyn, seeking to protect pony herds on the

Pine Ridge Reservation The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation ( lkt, Wazí Aháŋhaŋ Oyáŋke), also called Pine Ridge Agency, is an Oglala Lakota Indian reservation located entirely within the U.S. state of South Dakota. Originally included within the territory of the Grea ...

, was dispatched to capture him. Llewellyn along with an army from detachment under

George Crook George R. Crook (September 8, 1828 – March 21, 1890) was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. During the 1880s, the Apache nicknamed Crook ''Nantan ...

lured him to a meeting with a promise of a pardon from the governor. In a melee two of Doc's gang were killed and a lawman name
Hazen
was wounded but Middleton was captured and was taken to

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...

, where he was convicted of

Grand larceny Larceny is a crime involving the unlawful taking or theft of the personal property of another person or business. It was an offence under the common law of England and became an offence in jurisdictions which incorporated the common law of Engla ...

and served a prison sentence from September 18, 1879 and released on June, 18 1883. In 1884 he and his third bride moved to

Gordon, Nebraska Gordon is a city in Sheridan County in the state of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. Its population was 1,612 at the 2010 census. History Gordon was incorporated as a village in 1885 when the railroad was extended to ...

, where he operated a saloon and was briefly a deputy sheriff. In 1897 it was reported he was City Marshal of

Edgemont, South Dakota Edgemont is a city in Fall River County, South Dakota, Fall River County, South Dakota, United States. The population was 725 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The city lies on the far southern edge of the Black Hills in southwestern ...

. In 1900 he later moved to

. He had a saloon in both Gordon and

Ardmore, South Dakota Ardmore is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Fall River County, South Dakota, United States. The town was founded in 1889 by European-American settlers. The population was 1 at the 2020 census. Description The t ...

, and was also the town Marshal. In 1913 he moved to Orin Junction, Wyoming, where he opened a saloon. After getting in a knife fight at the bar he was arrested for dispensing liquor illegally. While in jail he contracted

erysipelas Erysipelas () is a relatively common bacterial infection of the superficial layer of the skin ( upper dermis), extending to the superficial lymphatic vessels within the skin, characterized by a raised, well-defined, tender, bright red rash, t ...

and died. He is buried in Douglas Park Cemetery in

Douglas, Wyoming Douglas is a city in Converse County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 6,120 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Converse County and the home of the Wyoming State Fair. History Douglas was platted in 1886 when the Wyoming C ...

Media produced of his life

A short documentary film aired on Nebraska PBS in 2017 by filmmaker David Higgins (''

The Aviation Cocktail ''The Aviation Cocktail'' is a 2012 independent American drama film directed by David R. Higgins and starring Michael Haskins, Brandon Eaton, Beau Kiger, and Leah Lockhart. The plot is about the entangled lives of three World War II veterans livin ...

'') called ''Doc Middleton: The Unwickedest Outlaw''. The opening of the short states that Higgins has spent a decade researching the life of the famed Nebraska outlaw. The film uses reenactments and animation, along with interviews from individuals such as Platte County historian Tim Benson, President of the

Association of Professional Genealogists The Association of Professional Genealogists is an organization that promotes professional and business ethics in the field of genealogical research. Organized in 1979, its offices are in Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in ...

Roberta King, Rock County historian Carolyn Hall and Converse County historian Steve Gregersen.

References

External links

*
Doc Middleton: The Unwickedest Outlaw (short doc) on Vimeo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Middleton, Doc 1851 births 1913 deaths Outlaws of the American Old West People from Bastrop, Texas People from Cheyenne, Wyoming People from Fall River County, South Dakota People from Gordon, Nebraska People from Sidney, Nebraska